Wondering what happens when you immerse into a problem long enough to spot opportunities right in front of you eyes?

I sat down with Chris Riley from TIKD (@gettikd) to hear how he's taking his team's track record of success in the energy industry and applying it to a tech startup with massive opportunity in an area we can all relate to - traffic tickets!

Chris shares his biggest lessons as an entrepreneur, including:

- the importance of giving yourself permission to come up with bad ideas

- how to unlock opportunities that make people say "why didn't I think of that"

- why having a keen eye on cash flow is a cornerstone to building a business model that works

Keep an eye on this Miami startup that has momentum and interest from top venture capitalists and others; some fantastic lessons to learn from Chris and his team at TIKD, not to mention a new and convenient way to save big on those traffic tickets and keep points off your record.

Highlights

1:45 - How Chris and his team have launched entrepreneurial ventures in area where they have no experience

3:40 - How Chris' experience getting a speeding ticket spawned the idea for TIKD

5:45 - How he immersed into the intricacies of the traffic system to identify the areas of opportunity

7:00 - The importance of using data to validate the business idea

8:30 - Why to be okay coming up with bad ideas

9:15 - How he and his team evaluate ideas and decides which to pursue

11:15 - Why they aren't seeking investors at the moment

15:00 - How TIKD makes handling your traffic tickets cheaper, faster, and risk-free

18:30 - How to evaluate the cash flow attractiveness of a business

20:15 - Thoughts on using an overseas developer versus a US-based one

22:15 - Who they view as the competition

23:40 - How they've decided on rolling out geographically - local vs national

25:45 - Thoughts on business model risk vs execution risk

29:15 - Closing questions: best advice received, book recommendations, pros/cons of doing business in Miami, what he'd do with $500 and brand new to Miami

 

Mentioned in this episode

TIKD Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance